Auckland Newsletter June 2015

Simon Young of syEngage to talk about Chinese Social Media

We’re incredibly fortunate to have Chinese social media expert Simon Young as our guest speaker this month.

He will talk about how Kiwis are using Chinese social media to engage with China this Sunday, 21 June. Simon is the chief executive of syEngage, an Auckland-based company that focuses on making Kiwi brands relevant in China through social media.

Simon is a sought-after public speaker. He has spoken and presented in Sydney, Shanghai and throughout New Zealand.

Sunday’s event will be held in the Mount Eden Community Hall, just off Mount Eden Rd and 50 metres down Ngaruhoe St, in a wooden building on the left.

China’s main social media platforms:

Wechat is similar to WhatsApp. It has more than 500 million monthly active users.

Youku is China’s biggest online video site, and the world’s second largest after YouTube. It has 500 million monthly active users and over 800 million videos watched daily.

Sina Weibo is similar to Twitter, but also has Facebook- like features. It has 176 million monthly active users.

Ken Liu to report on Annual Conference

The NZCFS hosted its National Conference at Tahunanui School in Nelson, from 22 to 24 May.

The theme for the conference was “有办法 YO BANFA: There is a way!” based on the title of a book by Rewi Alley.

Our committee member Ken Liu discussed with other members across the country about what they had been doing over the year and new initiatives around youth involvement.

Ken will deliver his report this Sunday, before the guest speaker takes the stage.

Our Auckland members Ken Liu, Zixuan, both holding the banner, and Prof. Xinming, considering her work, all attended the conference.

Xinxing was invited to present her artwork in the conference, and it was warmly welcomed by members from other branches, says Ken.

Auckland Branch agrees to be a sponsor of Songs of Peace Concert

The forthcoming celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in September 1945, have a special significance for friends of China – and especially our Society says Acting President George Andrews. For the Japanese surrender also signalled the end of their war of aggression against China that began in 1937. As part of the commemorations, our Auckland Branch has agreed to be a sponsor of a Songs of Peace Concert at Sky City on Saturday 8 August featuring the Auckland Chinese Philharmonic Choir.

They will be performing songs from China, Russia, America and our Maori battalion. More details next newsletter.

It’s worth remembering that like China, New Zealand was at war with Japan. When fighting its war against Japan, China was also fighting America’s war, Australia’s war and New Zealand’s war. Over a million Japanese troops with their supporting aircraft and armour, were finally enmeshed in China. Japan’s penetration in our Pacific theatre was reduced by that considerable amount.

Rewi Alley was the leading light in the Gung Ho industrial co-operative movement established in 1938 to make up for the loss of 70 percent of China’s manufacturing industry after China’s north east and coastal area fell into the hands of the invading Japanese. Without industry, China could not keep its armies supplied, or its peasants equipped. To cheat the Japanese war machine, Alley masterminded and ultimately directed the Gung Ho plan to establish small-scale factories in towns and villages throughout the hinterland ahead of any Japanese advance, and organise displaced workers and refugees into small cooperative units.